


Sleep

by aceofhearts88



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Fluff, M/M, New Parents, Sam and Rhodey are so tired, friends helping out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-27
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-07-27 02:27:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7599907
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aceofhearts88/pseuds/aceofhearts88
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Those little smiles makes everything worth it, even the sleepless nights - well fuck no sometimes they didn't, sometimes all you wanted was some goddamn sleep.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sleep

Sam had thought the first kid would be the most difficult, all the changes and all the new things they would have to get used to, the switch from almost undisturbed sleep to getting up five times a night for bottles, diapers and comfort. The fact that someone was there now who was so incredibly relying on them.

First of all, the people who said it was all worth it when they just smiled at you once, could kiss his glorious ass. What bullshit.

And secondly, fucking hell had they been wrong with their guesses.

The second one, that's where you gave up on being an independent adult being entirely.

Sam didn't want to use the word easy, both of them had never used the word easy, they had never thought it would be easy, they had just foolishly believed it to be easier. And in theory, it should have been. They were used to unusual hours, they got the diaper drill down, they got all the neat little tricks implanted in their heads now. How to wrap, how to burp, how to carry, how to swing, how to play, how to soothe, how to comfort.

They were pros at this.

No, they were not.

\--

What no one told you when they were all gushing over how much easier everything is with the second child, is that there is still your first-born who doesn't just evaporate upon a sibling joining in. No, your firstborn will still be pretty much there and wanting attention, care and love, too, like it is her or his right to want.

And if your firstborn was a toddler, like in their case, beautiful little boy with bright golden brown eyes and a curious mind, he didn't give an ounce of a fuck about parents who couldn't sleep through the night because the newborn was trying out that amazing pair of lungs she had been gifted with.

Energy. Both kids always had so much energy and Sam really couldn't understand where all of that energy was coming from in those tiny bodies.

Screamed through the whole night and kept what felt like half the block awake? Perfect smiling sunshine during the day, babbling and smiling and so happy, always moving those little arms and hands, always so curious and attentive.

Kept awake by her screaming brother half the night and had bad dreams the other half? Come sunrise bounced back to being a super happy little girl who only wants to run and run and run, who always laughs and talks and asks questions and wants to know about everything, who never sits down for even give minutes before racing off again.

The adult version of events looked like this:

Kept awake all night, fed the baby, rocked the toddler, changed the baby, sang a lullaby for the toddler, fed the baby, stared at the sleeping toddler in envy, changed the baby, rocked the baby, slept an hour, shook awake by the toddler demanding breakfast. Complete Zombie during the day.

Sam and Rhodey were just so tired.

No superhero status left you prepared for this. No fighting routines and experience and three battles a week gave you any help in dealing with kids. Super-villains let you sleep sometimes, kids sometimes didn't even offer you two minutes to go to the toilet alone.

They loved their kids, of course they did, they loved them more than anything else in the world, but sometimes you just really really really wanted some sleep, too.

\--

Sam pushed the stroller along the path through the beautiful green Central Park, surrounded by happy children and smiling parents laughing on the playground, happy young couples cuddling in the sun on the meadows and senior citizens feeding the ducks by the lake. So peaceful, the paradise island in ever busy New York City.

In the stroller, Thomas was looking around with wide eyes, babbling quietly to himself, happy and wide awake, absolutely no thought towards sleeping in that tiny perfect head. Sam himself was barely able to think of anything but sleeping, sleeping in a soft bed, sleeping on a comfortable couch, sleeping in a cozy armchair, sleeping in the soothing rocking chair in the nursery.

Even that sun kissed patch of grass over there by the pond looked so inviting. Or that bench over there in the shadow of the old oak tree. 

One foot in front of the other.

He didn't even want to know how he looked, bags under his eyes probably having gathered bags of their own by now. His eyes were open just enough so that he didn't run into anyone with the stroller on these endless walks they took apart these days just so the other one could catch a hand full of hours of sleep a day. Like that was ever enough.

It didn't change of course how much he loved those little nuggets, how still every smile and every second of laughter filled his heart and soul with so much love, a love that he had never thought he could feel. So deep and unconditional. These kids were a part of him, a part of his life, a part of very being, and their happiness was his as well.

But sleep, man, sleep. 

The metal hand that got wrapped around the stroller right next to hers and gently steered it out of the way of the two teenagers with their smartphones up to their noses caught Sam really out of nowhere and he spun around. Coming face to face with Bucky and nearly face-planting into him when the sudden movement got him so dizzy.

“Hey, Zombie.” Bucky smirked and then leaned around him, whole face softening into a dumb little smile, “Hey, baby.”  
“What are you doing here, Bucky? I thought you were in...good god what was that name again? Mara...Malo...” Sam tried and failed, dragging a hand over his face, Bucky chuckled and gently hip-checked him out of the way, taking over the stroller and pushing it along the way again. Thomas stopped getting fussy and settled back into watching the sky above him, trees passing by.

“Maloyaroslavets.” Bucky spoke it out like you didn't twist a tongue or two around it, Sam grunted and kept walking on dead feet, “And I've come back yesterday, they didn't even bother hiding the scientists really, wasn't a challenge at all. In, out, with saved hostages in under twenty minutes.” He explained and grinned when Thomas kicked his little feet.

“So the first thing you did is stalk your friends in Central Park?” Sam asked him and scoffed when Bucky glared at him, “Isn't T'Challa in town, I thought the two of you wouldn't leave the bedroom for a week. How long haven't you seen each other now?” Bucky frowned at him.  
“A week, Sam, a week.” He answered and Sam blinked, and then cursed, stupid baby brain, he kept on losing track of anything else but babies these days, “See, that's why I am here, you need sleep. This is an official intervention, go home, take your husband and lie down. Sleep until tomorrow, have some one on one time.”

“But...”

“Listen, Chall is on his way right now to get Antonia. We've baby proved the apartment to the smallest corner, totally baby and toddler safe. We got this, just go home and get some sleep.” Bucky said and Sam just barely held himself back from falling against him in pure gratitude. They stopped and he leaned down to kiss Thomas, hugging that beautiful little baby boy to his chest for a moment before settling him down into the stroller again.

“But don't get any ideas, these are still Rhodey and my kids, get your own baby, Barnes, you don't get to keep mine.” Sam pointed out and even managed to glare for a moment before he yawned, Bucky snorted and turned him west.

“Go home, Sam.”

\--

In the army, Rhodey had quickly learned to grab sleep whenever it was possible. Out like a light the second his body was allowed to relax, pillows were better than any sleeping pills the world had on offer, plane seats more comfortable sometimes than any bed. Even simple chairs, just five minutes of quick nap time before the next meeting. 

He had gone so many times without a good night's sleep, had flown combat missions on nothing but sheer will alone when things got rough. But damn, kids sure changed everything.

Decades of military experience, decades of thinking handling Tony Stark prepared you for having your own kids to raise, but boy had he been wrong. Never in his life had he ever managed to fall asleep making coffee, standing up, with bare feet on the cold tiles in the kitchen.

“Daddy!” It cut through his head like a flashlight through a heavy fog, slow and dull, small hand pulling on his pant leg, “Daddy, it's going over!” The bell like voice warned and he bit back a curse in the next second when the coffee ran hot over his hand. Rhodey snapped open his eyes and rushed to turn off the coffee machine, pulling the mug out from under the steady flow of hot coffee and grabbed a wet cloth to dab the mess away.

“Thanks for warning Daddy, sweetheart.” He called out and smiled down at his little angel who beamed and skipped back over into the living room. Rhodey groaned when he was alone in the kitchen and cleaned up the mess he had created, he had just wanted a coffee that wasn't really doing anything in keeping him awake anymore anyway.

“Come play with me and uncle Challa, Daddy!” Antonia offered him when he stepped back into the living room, half of the coffee already inhaled again. And he froze as his daughter's words really registered in his mind, snapping up his head he stared at the man sitting cross-legged on the carpet in front of the windows, Antonia's doll in one hand and the hairbrush in the other, Antonia lying on her stomach in front of him, sorting through the doll clothes.

“T'Challa?! When did you get here?” Rhodey wanted to know, feeling not for the first time like an out of body experience was taking place. The king of Wakanda, currently smiling at him and brushing little Beebee's hair, looked at him, up and down, and it was only then that Rhodey realized he had never changed out of his pyjamas, despite the two dozen times he had planned on doing so since Sam had left for a walk.

“I've been here since half an hour. You wanted to make us some coffee, do you remember?” T'Challa helped him out and as much as he tried Rhodey couldn't remember. Oh god, he was so tired. T'Challa rolled his eyes, all in fondness and not annoyance, and turned to Antonia, “Are you all packed, honey?”

“Packed for what?”

“I'm going to spend the day and night with Uncle Challa and Uncle Bucky, Daddy. We're having a sleepover.” Antonia told him, her voice portraying that it might have not been the first time she had said those words in the last hour or so. Rhodey admired her patience, she really was the sweetest most perfect little angel, their little daughter, so patient with her overtired exhausted fathers.

“Buck went to get Thomas and send Sam home. You two really need to get some sleep.” T'Challa grinned but looked a little worried, too. Rhodey couldn't blame him, they were really out of it by now, “Tony will come by later, we'll make pizza. Bucky will make cake and then Tony and him will compete over best uncle for hours again until they fall asleep first. I'll have them both back tomorrow at noon. On the dot, I promise.”

\--

He was already more or less asleep on the couch when warm hands pushed him over and Sam basically flopped on top of him, still wearing his shoes but none of them really gave a fuck anymore. 

“Hi.” Sam whispered and then yawned and buried his face deeper against Rhodey's neck, “I can't believe it's so quiet.” And it was, it really was, he could actually hear the very distant sound of the AC and there were birds outside. Rhodey smiled and curled both arms around Sam's back, pulled him closer against his chest, letting their legs twist together. Sam blindly fumbled for a blanket and then threw it over them, clumsy and only half succeeding in actually covering them.

“Nap now? Order food then? Bed later?” Rhodey proposed and Sam nodded against his neck and then from one second to the next just clonked out. Breathing evening out, body going limb, dead asleep. And Rhodey smiled and cuddled him some more, felt the warmth of his body against his own and let it and the silence around them soothe him to sleep.

They would miss the kids terribly when they woke up, but they would also have the energy to miss them. They would get up and tidy up a little bit, only a little bit, and then they would order food from their favorite place around the corner, Chinese they hadn't been able to eat in weeks because Thomas hated the smell.

They ate outside on the balcony, playing footsie under the table and enjoying a glass of wine while the sun set and colored the world so beautifully golden around them. Just the two of them, sharing kisses and watching each other smile.

They went to bed after that, door closed for the first time in months, undressed each other slowly, no more hurried secret quickies, they had time tonight, so much time for themselves. They kissed and touched each others' bodies, felt skin on skin and felt themselves come alive in each others' love.


End file.
